Staples Gave Me A $50 Discount Just Because I Asked For One

Back in November, Consumerist reader M. bought an office chair through Staples.com at $50 off the $300 regular price. She liked the chair a lot so she wanted to get another one, but the price had gone back up. Couldn’t hurt to ask for the lower amount, right?

So M. went onto the Staples.com live chat and asked the rep if it was possible to get this second chair at the same price as the first one.

M. provided her the original order number and the info on the chair so that the rep could verify. Going by the chat log M. forwarded to Consumerist, she had to wait a couple of minutes for an answer, but it appears to be worth the wait.

“We normally do not do this,” replied the chat rep, “but since you have been a long time customer, I will make
an exception to the rule and allow it.”

The rep offered to place the order for M., but M. had some other items she wanted to buy. So the rep waited while M. completed that order. Once she had the order number, the rep was able to add the discounted chair to the order.

So the lesson of the story is that it never hurts to ask, especially if you have been a long-time customer at a store and even more so when you’re making a purchase of several hundred dollars or more.

You might recall that a Home Depot employee recently broke down exactly how much each in-store employee can offer as a discount to customers without having to jump through hoops. If anyone at Staples — or any other retailer — wants to share similar information with Consumerist readers, e-mail us at tips@consumerist.com.

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